No need to look behind against Leafs

Plenty of ground to cover and not much time to do it, so let’s start right in:

Colton Orr is set to return to the lineup, in large part to counter the physical Leafs (who issued a beat-down of the first order last night against Carolina). But what’s most telling is who’s coming out: Ryan Hollweg. Granted, Tom Renney never said as much, but seeing how Hollweg and Jason Ward were the last two players on the ice after the morning skate, this isn’t exactly Sherlock Holmes territory. And what Renney did say is the player coming out is someone in need of a breather.

“I think it’s a really important for a real deep breath here because it’s not quite gone as he had hoped and myself,” Renney said. “But he’s a very valuable part of our team, let’s leave it at that. He just needs a break.”

Indeed, while this is certainly noteworthy given Hollweg’s popularity both inside and outside the Rangers’ dressing room, I don’t get the sense that this is a long-term issue. It might be fatigue. It might be that Hollweg’s game is just a little off. And while no one has delusions of Hollweg being anything more than a grinder, it might be worth noting that he’s the only player on the team who had played every game without scoring a point (I have to check this, but he might even be the only one in the league).

All that said, my educated guess is that Renney is using tonight to light a fire under Hollweg, and that the wing comes back even harder on Saturday.

Michal Rozsival is out of the lineup tonight with a knee sprain, meaning Thomas Pock will indeed return to the lineup. Tom Renney indicated Rozsival is likely to return Saturday in Tampa, but in the meantime, Karel Rachunek will take his place alongside Marek Malik, while Pock will skate with Aaron Ward. The promising pairing of Dan Girari and Fedor Tyutin will remain intact.

You would think that a humbling 9-2 loss to Toronto in December might be a topic of conversation when the teams reconvene tonight. Renney has decided otherwise. The drubbing against the Maple Leafs was what triggered the seven game losing streak, and the coach figures there’s no reason to revisit the most self-destructive portion of the season. That said, I’m sure players still have that game fresh in their minds.

Pray for no shootout, if only for radio man Kenny Albert, who has a 10:45 game of his own tonight in Hackensack, and still has aspirations of getting there in time. Just imagine, if one team scores in the closing seconds of regulation to force overtime, we might hear our first profanity-laced tirade of the season.

Huge game and a must win– too bad about Hollweg– i missed my first game of the season last game, and from the accounts i heard, sounded like hollywood needs a rest. Only means that next game, he will be kicking serious butt…

Lets hope Pock plays so well that Renney has to keep him in and sit Malik next game. Come on POCK, i am rootin’ for ya!!!

the only problem I have with Hollweg out is who he’s sitting against. If it was Tampa or another softer team, then I could see it. But the Leafs are likely to pound the Charmins, er Rangers, and having Colton Orr and a bunch of Quakers isn’t going to deter them. At least with Hollweg in the lineup there’d be one more deterrent to Tucker taking liberties.

as bad as hall’s been hollweg has been worse. one good hit a night does not entitle you to a roster spot. learn how to play defense at least or kill a penalty. the kid has been a liabiltiy at best. he could use a few days off to catch a breather

I knew this would happen, that we would be risking missing the playoffs due to RenneyÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s or SatherÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s (one of the shmucks) being way to patient with these players. (Hossa Rachunek, Malik and waiting this long for a centermen for Shanny)And like I said midway at the half way mark that this league is way to tight to let these bums find their game. Oh well!! I will be surprised if we get into the palyoffs, especially if they bring some new players at this point, they will have to learn to click with each other. I kind of hope they donÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t make the playoffs maybe they will think about getting rid of Renney or Sather???????????

Hollweg has been bad? Where did this come from. What doesn’t show up on the scorecard is his physical play. For example, the game winning goal by Krog against Philly was specifically due to hollweg crashing the next…

Hollweg has not only been the only player to play a physical game, but he’s has also assumed the role of enforcer and has been willing to fight anyone, and has held his own. I disagree with this move. If there’s someone who needs a fire lit it’s Hall and it’s Hossa.

Think of all of the third and 4th line dregs on the team. Hollweg is one of the few who haven’t sat this season and he burns a lot more energy when he plays. I think a rest for him is good, although I think it would’ve been better served in the last game against the B’s so he could play physical tonight against the Leafs.

“Maybe Adam Hall will finally start playing tough tonight”

HAHA. Maybe Hossa will have a hat trick and Betts will have assists on all 3 goals.

tsalad, as for your Orr over/under, if he plays about 5 mins but has a fight, I’ll be happy with that amount of time. Orr NEEDS to fight someone or his spot in the lineup is useless because he has no other abilities, not even hitting. If he doesn’t fight, I’d rather have J.Ward get into a game, if only not to get any rustier than he must be becoming having not played since the loss to Atlanta and before that to Ottawa. Two games in 20 days has got to be taking its toll on him.

Why is everyone so focused on acquiring a 2nd line center to play with Shanahan when we may already have a 2nd line in Cullen-Orts-Prucha? With this line able to contribute offensively behind Nylander-Straka-Jagr, offense will not be an issue for this team- the 1-2 combination would be as good as any in the league.

Most interesting I think is the prospect that the team has a 3rd line with size in Betts-Shanny-Hossa that can neutralize and at the same time present an offensive threat. Talent is now spread through the 3 lines. Let’s not get caught up in Shanny being a 3rd-liner- if this line jells properly it can be thrown out there often against the oppostion’s best line to shut it down. Plus Shanny will still get PP time so the team will still get his goal scoring. No doubt Shanny’s buy-in will be needed for this but he’s supposed to be a team player isn’t he?

Renney should just stick with these 3 lines, let everyone know their roles, and not change anything. Add in a 4th energy line of Krog-Hollweg-Orr. Orr needs to be given a chance to go out there and bang some bodies without being a liability. Now is the time to give him the chance while there are potentially 3 other lines playing well. So the offense looks like this:

Robert, this ignores the fact that the reason why the POC line can get the offensive chances it has is because it is playing against other offensive lines that aren’t as good defensively. Playing it like a second line would lead to it being matched with a good defensive line and they would get shut down.

I’m probably not being clear. If Shanny’s “3rd” can play against other team’s 1 and 2 then COP will get plenty of time against other team’s lesser lines. That’s why I say let’s not get caught up in it being called 3rd or 2nd etc.

Robert, I understand you perfectly, but you are totally missing my point. The “lesser” lines you’re referring to are lesser in an offensive sense, but greater in a defensive sense. By playing the POC line as a defense first line(3rd line), it goes out against the other lines(1s and 2s) that are better offensively than they are defensively. This makes the POC line effective offensively because they hustle and can force turnovers and pin those lines into their own zone. They won’t be able to do this against good defensive lines (3s and 4s).

An example: POC would work well against NJ if it was matched with Gomez’s line because that line is about offense, and if you pin it in the defenzive zone, you can force a turnover and some chances. If it was matched with Pandolfo’s line, they would get shut down and be useless as an offensiveline, and the defensive acumen will be lost as well because Pandolfo’s line isn’t very offensively talented.

kovy, I was the only one who made the comparison and I did it for two reasons. Reason number one was to show that Hollweg doesn’t get as much icetime as others who have scored points. Hatcher is a first line defenseman who has only 1 assist. while averaging 24 mins a game. Imagine if Malik or Roszival had 24 mins a game every night and only had one assist to show for it. That’s why I’m saying Hollweg’s no points isn’t as offensive as that.

Second point is that even with his limited ice time, he still has signficantly more hits than Hatcher who is getting 3 times as much ice time and is supposed to be throwing more hits than Hollweg does. This shows that Hollweg’s intangibles (hitting) still makes him more valuable, even without mentioning the points issue.

Doodie to use your Devils example, we know who Pandolfo is playing against and it’s not Ortmeyer. Shanahan line goes against Gomez line. That leaves COP to go against Devils 3rd best line. I don’t agree with your premise that just because a line is offensive it is easier to play against. So you tell me, if Shanahan gets his center and now you have 2 offensive lines where does that leave the COP line? Are they the checking line?

Ã¢â‚¬Å“I think itÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s a really important for a real deep breath here because itÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s not quite gone as he had hoped and myself,Ã¢â‚¬? Renney said. Ã¢â‚¬Å“But heÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s a very valuable part of our team, letÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s leave it at that. He just needs a break.Ã¢â‚¬?

Maybe Sather can sit Renney down so’s to light a fire under him…methinks he is tired and needs a break.

Pray for no shootout, if only for radio man Kenny Albert, who has a 10:45 game of his own tonight in Hackensack, and still has aspirations of getting there in time. Just imagine, if one team scores in the closing seconds of regulation to force overtime, we might hear our first profanity-laced tirade of the season.

Sam, I thought Bobby Granger had the first profanity-laced tirade of the season.

It’s funny you guys are in this whole second or third line debate since, when I asked Renney about it the other day and I referred to them as the third line, he said, “What makes you say they’re the third line? We have a top line, and then we have some interesting things going on beneath that…” That’s not verbatim, but it’s pretty close.

Yes! That’s exactly what they are! The reason they scored points is because of defensively irresponsible lines that they managed to take advantage of with hustle. Let’s review the goals:

1) Prucha throws it in front from behind the net and it is knocked in by accident. This was done against the Bruins’ 2nd line who allowed the puck to be put deep into their own zone.

2) They work it in front to a trailing Michael Rozsival who was wide open because the defender who went to pick him up fell all over himself. Had he picked up Rozsi, that goal wasn’t going in. Defensively irresponsible.

I understand they won’t play against the Pandolfo line, but the line they WILL play against if they are used as a 2nd line will be a line that is thinking defense first, with the sole purpose of ensuring they don’t score. If you play a safe and smart defensive game against the POC line then they aren’t scoring any points.

This is all not to mention that Cullen is miserable defensively as a center when he is thinking offense first. Please see the first half of the season for reference.

By the way, do you really think that switching Ortmeyer and Shanahan IMPROVES the line offensively? Because that’s the original 2nd line with that one change. It’s the role they had to play during the game that allowed them to generate the chances that they did.

Thanks Sam I do find that interesting and for the first time in a while I think Renney is on the right track with lines. The fact is the team currently has enough offense to win. Look at other good teams around the league, many do not have the offense the rangers do but they win with commitment to a system and successful special teams. That I believe is the key on offense (defense a whole other story), not getting a 2nd line center.

Doodie I actually think the change does have potential to improve the line. Shananhan and Ortmeyer are different players not just in goal potential but in corner work, physical play etc- it may well be that Orts complements Cullen and Prucha better than Shanny- not a knock on Shanny just chemistry. And when you consider the ability to slide Shanny to strengthen another otherwise no-offense line it makes the team better as a whole.

there is no way any team is going to put a checking line against the cullen line guys come on now thats just not gonna happen. teams are going to match up against jagrs line and shanny’s line (NO MATTER WHO is on it) thats whats so great about the cullen line also adding offense there just isn’t enough defensive players to stop 3 good scoring lines. thats why buffalo is so dangerous.

Cullen needs to think defense first or they are going to give up a lot of goals because of him. We saw it earlier this season.All of the plays he was involved with from the Bruins game were transition because of strong defensive play. Making him think offense first will lead to the same problems he had playing 2nd line center originally, which led to the use of Betts and even Krog instead of him.

kovy, why wouldnt it happen? They were the reason for 4 goals in the last game. Hossa hasn’t even been involved in 4 goals this season. I’m sure they are really trying to shut down the offensive juggernaut that is Blair Betts, as opposed to a line that can explode on you offensively if you don’t play against them intelligently.

playing defense first is what is making that line so good. they are third liners doing their defensive job first then hurting teams in the transition and forecheck. its a great third line why argue about it. the next step is fixing the second line. they do that and they are probably one of the best teams in the east without question. to me it should be rather easy

kovy, your 3 goalscoring lines rationale is the entire reason why POC was effective. But if Shanahan is paired with Betts and Hossa, they will focus on POC instead and make Shanahan’s line have to be that 3rd line. And I like Shanny and all, but he’s not getting anywhere with Betts and Hossa, period.

One reason is that they are on the so-called third line and not having as much pressure to score and all three are resonably fast skaters and, if you read some of Ortmeyers’ comments, the coaching staff worked a lot on his offensive skills while he was recuperating and wasn’t able to practice with the team. I’ts not out of the realm of possibility that Ortmeyer could turn into a decent scorer.

Sam leave it to Renney & Co to leave Shanny with 4th liners rather than bringing up Immo & Callihan until they can make a deal. Would he do that to Jagr? NO! Yet he refuses to even give Shanny Staka or Nylander by putting J Ward with Jagr. It does not make alot of sense to me. Just as a corporate officer has a fiduciary responsiblity, so does NYR mgmt to try & put the best team on the ice to make the playoffs.Not doing that with Shanny is absurd, nevermind some of the other moves. Renney & Co can spin all they want but I think they’re making many mistakes which costs points just like a players do.

if you think any coach is gonna say lets not worry about shanahan stop the cullen line your wrong. he’s earned that respect i promise you no coach would put a checking line on prucha not to mention you think coaches are even worried about matching up against a second or third line in general? coaches will match their best players against jagr end of story thats the matchup every night the rest of the gameplan is to play your game but don’t let the jagr line beat us.

You’re forgetting that they won’t have Malikenstein on as defense for most of the game so they have a plus already and Ortmeyer is an excellent defensive player and Prucha backchecks with the best of them.

I hear you all on the benefit of having COP go against lesser lines and in that respect we’re saying the same thing. I just don’t see the COP line being the defensive line that geoes out against the other teams top line in the playoffs, just too small. Now is the time to think out of the box, groom Betts-Hossa-Shanahan to be the line that neutralizes and has Shanny as a threat. There’s plenty of goals in the rest of the offense. We don’t need another center, just better attention to team defense and improvement on special teams.

Didn’t Hollweg just have a rest during the All-Star break? How much “rest” does the guy need? The schedule has not been that demanding in the last few weeks to warrant a rest for a grinding winger.

Hollweg’s zero points are unsettling, and his defensive game has lapsed a bit too but what should worry people is that he just rested for an entire week and still no improvement. Fact is Hollweg is a 4th line guy and nothing more, of which we have way too many of.

kovy, Why do you think Prucha disappeared during the second half of the last season? People started paying attention to him because they realized he was a legitimate threat.

That’s why when Jagr is double shifted they don’t put out the checking line for that double shift because they aren’t afraid of Jagr when he’s paired with Ward and Betts.

And Shanahan isn’t even as dangerous as Jagr. Shanahan needs a set up man to be truly effective. Jagr doesn’t, and furthermore can BE the set up man.

The Bruins started to match POC by the end of the game. Cullen got his goal at the exact half-way mark and then they didn’t register a point. It wasn’t because they weren’t working anymore, but because they weren’t being ignored as not a threat.

Prucha was there in the beginning too. Shanahan is more offense than defense but he certainly is no defensive slouch. He has killed PKs all season while Ortmeyer was out of the lineup, and he still does so, although less so now than before. The line was still a disaster.

they didn’t bring shanahan here to be a checking forward and they don’t have jed ortmeyer on the team to be a goal scorer. they WILL fix the second line and the cullen line will be the third line. call it what you will checking line third line whatever you are just looking for a label. they are great defensively together the three blocking shots and backchecking couldn’t ask for more to tell them you are now the second line think goals first would be sily and would ruin what they are doing.

How quickly we forget…I seem to remember that Prucha had a bad ankle injury last season that kept him out of the lineup for quite some time and it took him some time to be able to skate hard again so don’t blame it entirely on other teams looking for him.

you think prucha disappeared because of pressure from other other teams? you don’t think it had anything to do with the big knee injury he suffered right before the break? come on everyone who suffers that injury comes back at half speed everyone thats what slowed him down.

we just saw the last game what happens . guys were griping at Orty for lack of scoring before the last couple games going all the way back to last season. then they see what hustle, hitting, and leadership means. so to start the same crap about Hollweg is just ridiculous. I hope the czechs get run all night.
now we know who Renney boy blames for the drubbing last time.

A good offensive player is a threat with anyone- as long as the line plays responsible hockey it will get its chances. The 2nd line center noise is about building a rotisserie team not a playoff caliber hockey teama. If the power play starts clicking and they develop a big shut-down line like Betts-Hossa-Shanahan that can play the other team’s best lines and also make you pay if you make a mistake, there will be plenty of opportunities for the other 2 lines. The rotisserie team type thinking of getting a 2nd line center to play with Shanahan is exactly how this team always fails. The players and the talent is there- the question is the coaching and commitment.

I think it’s a great line, but trying to turn them into an offense first line is just a mistake.

kovy, I’m gonna break this down into two 16 game sections, split into eight games a piece

16 games leading to the break:

first eight games: 5g, 3a
second eight games:2g, 2a

16 games after the break
first eight games: 3g, 6a
second eight games:2g, 1a

In the first section, he wasn’t being marked as much and had big numbers. In the second section leading up to the break he had less so because teams were paying attention. When he came back from the knee injury, teams had stopped marking him as much because they were concerned with new scoring threats like Rucinsky and Sykora. Clearly the knee was not a problem since that was his most productive stretch, RIGHT AFTER THE INJURY. Then they shut him down again.

Only 3 games were left after that final 8 game section. He registered 1 assist.

First, Hollwegg needs a rest. Does he need a fire, no. But he has been ineffective and even his physical play is declining. I think Renney is hoping to have secondary scorers emerge – that’s what Cullen and (to a lesser extent) Hall was supposed to do. Hollwegg hasn’t sat yet, so that’s that.

As far as the COP-pers, watch them have one or two more games where they run shop racking up points, at will, and you’ll bet other coach’s will play against them as if they are a second line. Shanahan has no real goals in more than a month…coach’s and scouts see play and production first, then Hall of Fame names second. Why shutdown a guy that doesn’t need shutting down when you have a “3rd” line wreaking havoc?

I like Betts as a defensive player, but he shouldn’t be playing on the 2nd line. That’s just wrong. He should be centering the 4th line instead of Krog and Krog should be centering the UNH alumni hockey team.

Oh please! You think if Hollweg was in the line-up this wouldn’t happen? They’ve been run all year with the mighty Ryan in the line-up. The kid has heart but he deters nothing and no one fears him. The guy is a punching bag.

hollweg is the Speed Bag and Orr is the heavy bag. Methinks Orr is either going to fight a lightweight and win(like he did with Morrison against DC) or fight a heavyweight and lose(like Brashear in the same game). Either that or he doesn’t fight at all.

so breaking it down into 8 game stretches now??? come on jesus. for two months before the injury he was scoring thats the facts look at it yourself. he got hurt came back and wasn’t the same. my goodness really stretching here doodie. next your gonna say well 4 games in october he was being shadowedso he didn’t score lol.

Very interesting points, and well-taken. Is Shanahan’s problem that he needs a set-up man, or that he was just unspeakably hot earlier in the year? The problem though has been that other than the top line there was nobody that could make you pay while playing good defense. Shanny’s line became so preoccupied with generating offense that not only couldn’t they do that,but they became a defensive liability. And the bottom two lines were comprised entirely of guys who could not score. And now you’ve got Shanahan playing with two of those guys, and so the question becomes, are you turning that whole line, including Shanny, into a non-threat as well?

OK, 8 games is a lot of time. 1/10th of the season. You can make or miss the playoffs on a lot less than 8 games.

He wasn’t scoring in that time BEFORE the injury. Then he comes back form the injury and has one of his most productive 8 games stretches of the entire season, so don’t give me the knee injury slowed him down BS, because he was doing just fine when he got back.

I didn’t see the game or the so-called “COP” line Monday, but I’m a bit befuddled as to why folks are going so crazy after just one game. Granted, I’ll hope for the best –Cullen starts earning his check, Prucha regains his form and Ortmeyer honed his offensive skills –but after one game, it’s a bit premature to be dubbing them much of anything, especially knowing how quick Renney switches up lines. Sounds promising, but I’ll reserve judgement until I see them…

Ortmeyer – I’d be a bit doubtfull that he rises above a 20-30 point-per-year forward. But then again, he did generate offensive chances last year, just he always seemed to choke with his chances. Again, we can only hope…

As for Shanny being a checker, common. Wake up and smell the hockey equipment. Never. The need remains for a young center to feed Shanny. Hossa seems to be a good fit with him, simply because he’s got good control over the puck when he has it and works pretty hard behind the net and in the corners –a YOUNG(bold and underscored) playmaking center would fit nice on that line.

With regards to Hollweg, I’d also not freak out too much. He sat games plenty of times last year. I do think Orr in place of Hollweg is adding to a problem and not solving it. Ryno is every bit of a fighter as Orr AND can generate offensive chances. Orr, well, he can hit and throw his mits down. Winning fights even seems to be a stretch for him.

you want month by month? the two 16 game periods, theyre about a month each. One month he has 7g, 5a, the other month he has 5g, 7a. So that injury stuff is BS. He was most ineffective right before the injury and 2 weeks after his return from the injury, when he had enough time to produce and make teams wary of him again. What’s hard to understand about this.

You’re whole argument is that he was slowed by injury, but the post injury time was his most productive!

Anyone see the “great and mighty Martin” brodeur get beat by Big Hossa in the shoot-out? Did that move look familiar?

…best part was, its probably the exact move little Hossa and big Hossa grew up trying to show each other up with as little kids playing pond hockey.

(This is dedicated to you, i forgot who you were, Mr.MartyBroduerIsJustTheBestGoaltenderEverYoureAWannaBeRangersFan)

Damn, that Devils goalie is just so good. Every goaltender let up 3 GA in the all-star game, except he had to make a statement. 6 GA!!! WOW!! Combine that with our -4 Sid the D-bag Kid and we got a nice loss.

Ahhh…Hoss, you’re a joke. Hollwegg needs a rest. Maybe Hall needs to get an apartment in Hartford, but withstanding Hollwegg needs a rest no doubt.
And (maybe I drank more of the Ranger punch here) but Hossa hasn’t been that bad the last 3-4 weeks, Malik and A. Ward have been our worst d-men in that time, and Shanahan also needs a 1-2 game breather.

It’s fun to get crazy about the COP line since it’s been one of the few exciting surprises the team’s had all year and it involves two fan faves — but I agree with whomever said it shouldn’t be too much of a big deal yet. It’s been a couple games.

Chris, since Weekes is a UFA this summer, the only way I see a team willing to take him on is if a playoff contender loses a goalie to injury in the next few weeks. What other scenario would a team be willing to give anything up for a back-up goaltender they’re going to lose anyway?

HossaMVP : People havenÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t JUST started in on Hollweg and his lack of scoring. IN fact early on people were talking about how he shouldnÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t be immune to the benching and scratches just because he brings one thing to the game. Fact is he isnÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t playing as well right now as he has been, he defiantly isnÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t hitting as much. But a game off for him will NOT suddenly tell other teams they can start being more nasty on the ice. Hollweg doesnÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t scare anyone in the NHL, very few players scare anyone in the NHL, Also, keep in mind that Orr usually has one decent game the first game he is back in…and a different kind of fire is lit under him. he knows the Rangers needs roster space to make moves, and he must know he is a likely candidate to be waived. Even if Hollweg out dose cost a game, this one game is not going to make or break anything.

Peter I think a credible playoff team needs to have a strong line capable of going against other team’s top lines. Shanahan is not scoring lately and I believe that is only partially due to the lack of a center (remember he also plays the power play with Nylander) and as much to do with fatigue from him being 35 and leaned on for most of the season. So my point is why not have him be part of a line with two other strong on the puck players like Betts and Hossa and focus on neutralizing on not necessarily scoring? If the team is committed to a system he will still get his chances on transition, and he will also play on the power play. I’m not saying Betts is the answer for the center on that line and I’m not going to complain if that spot gets upgraded but if it becomes a one dimensional offensive player whose job is to feed shanahan then that makes 2 easy lines to play against with a 3rd small COP line. Just doesn’t seem to me like a team built for playoff success. I think there already is enough offense- that is not the issue on this team. Special teams and commitment to team defense is what’s missing. In other words strong coaching and a team of players willing to buy in.

I like how everyone blames Bettman for ruining hockey. Bettman is just the puppet of the owners. He does nothing except make sure what they do is legal. The owners, collectively, are ruining the sport. Bettman is a nobody without the owners.

I’ve met Bettman and had a pretty decent lengthed conversation with him (about 10 mins or so). He’ll be the first to tell you that his job is to do whatever the owners tell him to do. The fact that none of them are crying for his removal shows that he’s doing exactly what their bidding is.

I posted a comment that’s awaiting moderation due to the links, so here it is without them:

I was going on your report of an 8 man board and basic legal knowledge of the way boards of directors work. Directors can be removed by votes of shareholders(in a corporate setting). Until looking into it myself, I was uncertain of the makeup of the board of governors

something to note is that Bettman doesnÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t have a vote. HeÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s a nobody. Just a lawyer who makes sure that the league is run in a proper and legal fashion.

He used to work at Proskauer Rose, a big firm that David Stern, the NBA comissioner, used to work for as well. They worked there at about the same time too.

Right HossMVP, exactly. Thats what I’m saying here…Marcel Hossa is better for the Rangers and the NHL than Crosby would be. I see what great intelligence I’m dealing with here, I’m sure you had an 800 on your SAT reading comprehension seeing how well you summarized my point…sheesh.

To make things simpler, I won’t include any words that have more than 3 syllables just so you’ll have no excuse the next time you try to twist my words. How does that sound?

Under Bettman’s watch the NHL has disappeared. He has made the game fit products not the other way around and the jersey or his TV deal with NBC or his weds night all star game when there is no football that Sunday are proof og his incompetence.